Several factors came together in the late 1970s and early 1980s to bring about the formation of the Fleeting Moments Waltz & Quickstep Orchestra.
Louise Anderson, string bass and tuba player, and David Haldeman & Doug Bruestle first met when the Findlay Market Association engaged a group to play the ragtime music of Scott Joplin as arranged for small orchestra by Gunther Schuller of the New England Conservatory. The group played on a float for the Opening Day Parade c. 1975
It was agreed that the group should play more often, and Louise got a group together to play for a vintage dance organized by Richard Powers.
In 1981, the Flying Cloud Academy of Vintage Dance was founded by Richard, and he named the orchestra and arranged most of the music. Monthly dances were held at the Calhoun YMCA near the University of Cincinnati campus featuring dances from the Renaissance to the Big Band era.